


Skin.

by Wenjunhoe



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: M/M, kinda a horror AU, mostly Seokmin and Seungkwan, unedited
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-08-18
Packaged: 2019-06-29 00:27:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15718176
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wenjunhoe/pseuds/Wenjunhoe
Summary: "I know what you were reading." Seokmin said softly, "You shouldn't go around touching things you don't understand. Please promise me you wont touch it again."Seungkwan nodded, "I promise." he lied. He didn't know what it was, but he couldn't help but to seem drawn to the yellowed pages, but more importantly to the face scribbled on the inside.





	Skin.

**Author's Note:**

> Unedited. Written one evening on a whim. Please excuse my mistakes. I went into this with no plan.

Seungkwan wasn’t quite sure what to say to his best friend Seokmin when he suggested vacationing in his cousins cabin, looking back on the conversation and the outcome of where he was now, he should have probably declined.

Let’s start at the beginning, most stories tend to start with that anyways. 

Boo Seungkwan had been best friends with Lee Seokmin since primary school, the two of them were practically inseparable. They shared the same talents, the same interests, and in a few cases had even shared the same crush. The two never let silly things like that get between them though. They agreed on most everything and if Seungkwan knew anything, he knew he could trust seokmin no matter what. So, when seokmin suggested they take a vacation from their boring job bagging groceries at the supermarket, Seungkwan agreed without thinking too hard on the matter. 

Before he knew it they were in some big truck Seokmin had managed to convince his uncle to let him borrow, making their way up into the woods miles from even the nearest gas station. It was just the two of them, a beat up truck that Seungkwan felt insanely out of place in, and the cool winter air blowing by them as the truck banged and clanked as it maneuvered the dirt road. "Are you excited?" Seokmin asked, interrupting the almost hypnotic sound of the trucks rattling.

"I guess so! This isn't usually my cup of tea, but I guess it'll be fun nonetheless." He flashed his best friend his warmest smile, the truck seemingly growing warmer just at the first sign of that starry eyed Boo family grin.

The rest of the car ride was mostly silent besides the two of them singing along to the half working radio, acting as the two always did. Seungkwan was admittedly a bit nervous to go out into the woods, his mother used to tell him creepy stories about the creatures that lived solely in the trees, nocturnal and inhuman. He remembered having nightmares about pale twisted frostbitten bodies limping after him in such a way that even just thinking about the creatures made his skin crawl. 

He was jolted out of his nightmarish thoughts once Seokmin pulled the car into the narrow driveway, a small cabin nestled in the trees a couple hundred feet away. The wooden structure gave off a warm and comforting aura, and suddenly Seungkwan was more excited than he had been initially. He got out of the cab of the truck once he had put his jacket on, helping Seokmin grab the supplies and bags from the truck bed. "Is that everything?" Seokmin asked just as Seungkwan slung the last pack over his shoulder with a smile. 

"Seems to be, do you have the keys?" Seungkwan asked, walking around to where his friend stood, holding up a silver key without saying a work. Seungkwan nodded in acknowledgement and followed Seokmin to the door impatiently. As soon as the door had been pulled open, the smell of old pine and mothballs wafted out through the archway. He coughed a bit, as the smell of the mothballs weren't very pleasant at all.

They made their way inside, setting their bags down on the floor of the sitting room. The cabin itself wasn't very large, and was adjourned with many bookshelves and wasn't at all lacking of windows. There was one on each wall, allowing sunlight to filter through in perfect warm beams. He had always been amazed at how the weather could still be cold even with the sun spreading its warmth along the earth. With that yellow light, everything should be warm. The sun was comfortable and safe.

"So, do you want me to start putting the food in the fridge? Do you know how to start a fire?" Seungkwan asked Seokmin who was shedding his large coat off.

"I sure do, just get started on that and I'll get some wood from the wood room." And with that he disappeared into a room to the side, humming along to a tune of a song Seungkwan couldn't quite seem to put his finger on. Seungkwan grabbed the two bags they had brought specifically for food the weekend, taking them to the small kitchen. He unzipped the bags, separating the foods into what needed to be put in the refrigerator and what didn't. He was in the process of sliding a dozen eggs onto the top shelf of the fridge when Seokmin returned with his arms full of chopped lumber.

Seungkwan chuckled over at Seokmin, who seemed to be struggling despite trying to play it off as nothing. "You having trouble there, Seokmin?" He asked, both eyebrows raised in amusement. Seokmin glared at him in response, rolling his eyes, causing Seungkwan to laugh yet again.

Seungkwan just resumed the job he had been doing, separating the food and snacks, putting them where they needed to be. By the time he was finished, a red warm fire was growing in the fireplace, its warmth enveloping the cabin in open arms. He made his way back over to the couch, finally feeling comfortable enough to shed his coat like a cicada molting its skin. Seungkwan stretched his arms with a yawn, the entire atmosphere making him feel calm. Seokmin slid into a chair across from him gracefully.

"So what do you think?" He aske with an eyebrow cocked in question.

Seungkwan nodded, lips pursed, expression content. "I definitely think its cozy, and I also think its peaceful. I'm glad the scent of the fire is covering up the scent of mothballs, though. That part wasn't at all pleasant." He said, half-jokingly. Seokmin smiled at his response, untying his shoes and sliding them off his feet.

"Do you want me to start dinner?" He asked Seungkwan, "I haven't eaten today, and since you've been with me I don't think you have either. Unless you snuck some granola bars into your mouth while I was driving."

Seungkwans cheeks turned a soft rose color at the accusation, his eyebrows furrowed. "No! Go make dinner, idiot." He huffed. Seokmin laughed and got up to do so. It was only 7:30, and he thought it'd be best to eat dinner before the sun decided to set on them. Seungkwan decided to look around while Seokmin prepared for dinner, examining the rooms in the small cabin. There only seemed to be the sitting room, kitchen, bathroom, wood room, and two small bedrooms. He entered one of the sleeping quarters, looking at yet another bookshelf mounted to the wall. 

He understood completely as to why there were so many books, staying here with no television or internet would be boring if there wasn't a way to occupy yourself. There was electricity, but alas none of the things that were fun came with it Seungkwan had offered to bring a TV and perhaps a game system, but Seokmin declined, saying that he wanted an authentic rustic cabin weekend. Seungkwan wasn't going to deny him that, at the very least.

He took a seat on the small twin sized bed, looking at the books on the shelf. There were tons of classics on the shelf such as 'The Great Gatsby' and even titles such as 'Hannibal' were present. His eyes roamed across all the books until they stumbled across one that didn't have a name on the spine. Seungkwan furrowed his brows, standing up to pluck the particular book from the shelf. It looked to be a journal of some sort, bound in a soft leather of an animal that didn't quite seem to be from cattle. 

The material was light and thin like that of lamb leather, which intrigued him. He opened up the leather bound book and was greeted by neat handwriting. 

 

one.  
They are watching me. He is watching me. I hear him at night, feet patrolling around the cabin. As soon as the sun sinks below the trees I can feel him toying with my emotions, dark eyes boring holes into my skull. I cant sleep, hes in my head. Hes clawing around in my skull, searching for something.

 

The first journal stopped there, and Seungkwan couldn't help but to read on, if this was some sort of fiction, it sure was written out well. Seungkwan was easily scared, but he was convinced that it was false. Despite trying to convince himself, his mothers stories about the woods filtered into his head again. He began to think of papery skin, teeth like needles threatening to puncture your skin like shards of glass. He shivered and read on, goosebumps covering his pale skin.

 

Two  
Hes at the window again. I see him. His eyes are so so cold, they make me feel frozen. Hes watching me as I write this, feeding off of my fear, made stronger by the shadows. His face looks so human.. so human.

 

Seungkwan flipped through the pages, the entries full of paranoid babbling soon stopped and were replaced with drawings of what looked to be a man with beastlike features, eyes dark and clouded, teeth too large for his mouth, protruding from his lips as if they couldn't fit inside of his mouth. He gently ran his fingertips across the lead markings, tracing the details. They looked like something out of a horror movie, to say the least. The photos were gruesome, up until the last sketch. This one wasn't as horrifying, and the lines seemed to be much more steady and seemingly less frantic.

The face looked to be entirely human, eyes soft and full of honey, a soft buttercream smile to go alongside it. The drawing made Seungkwan feel warmth inside the pit of his chest. "Seungkwan?"

Seungkwan yelped at the sudden sound, dropping the journal onto the floor in pure terror. "Dinner is ready..?" Seungkwan looked up to see the quite concerned face of Seokmin staring back at him. 

"Oh.. O-okay. Thank you, I was just doing some reading." Seungkwan stated, still a little shaken up by the accidental scare his friend had given him. "I'm starved though..! Lets get some food!" And he hopped up, leaving the leather bound book in the floor, his head still flooded by the words and sketches on the old yellowed pages.

The two of them sat down at the small dining table, Seungkwan shoveling noodles into his mouth. "I know what you were reading." Seokmin said softly, "You shouldn't go around touching things you don't understand. Please promise me you wont touch it again."

Seungkwan nodded, "I promise." he lied. He didn't know what it was, but he couldn't help but to seem drawn to the yellowed pages, but more importantly to the face scribbled on the inside.

He would ask Seokmin what he knew about the journal, but by the way his friend was squirming, he knew that there was no way he would get any information out of him. He just finished his noodles and sat at the table in silence, not bothering to excuse himself. He didn't want to get up, he felt as if he had somehow upset Seokmin by flipping through the journal.

Seokmin was the first to get up and put his empty dish in the sink, disappearing down the hallway to the bedroom Seungkwan supposed would be the one he would stay in. Seungkwan stood to his feet, shuffling over and placing his own dishes into the sink atop his friends, grabbing his bag of clothes and going to his own sleeping quarters.

He stripped out of his day clothes, the sun sinking down below the trees, the sky slowly darkening like someone had painted it black with expensive ink imported from somewhere wealthy. The moon was invisible amongst the trees, or perhaps it just wasn't visible at all tonight 

It was strange how the atmosphere turned so quickly on its head once the sun packed up and left, the entire cabin was heavy with silence. Not even birds sounded outside, and Seungkwan could feel a sense of dread pulling him under. He quickly put his night clothes on, crawling into bed and underneath the blankets. He wished for nothing more than to be at his childhood home with his mother, under her blankets, listening to her heartbeat. Why was he all of a sudden so afraid of his surroundings.

He squeezed his eyes shut, Boo Seungkwan was afraid of a lot of things, but the dark was thankfully not one of them. At least, that's what he thought before tonight. He hid under the soft comforter, fear stricken for no particular reason. Maybe he shouldn't have touched that book at all, it was making him paranoid.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The sound made Seungkwans heart stop, it had come from the window.

Seungkwan sat up slowly in the bed, suddenly in another room. He looked around, it was dark and dreadfully silent. The silence was all but comfortable though, it was like a thick blanket thrown over him.. As if the blanket turned to liquid, entering seungkwans lungs like thick ink, suffocating him.

ink.

Ink was pouring out of his body, he couldn't breathe. Black staining liquid pouring out of his lips and nose, he tried to scream but a deep gurgle only came from his throat.  
pen.

When was there a pen in his hand? The liquid in his lungs showed no signs of being there, except for the coppery taste in his mouth. He looked around to see if the room was back to normal, but he was still in unfamiliar surroundings. He kept frantically searching the area with his eyes, his mind finally adjusting to the light. 

He could see the room now, but he wasn't in a room at all. He was surrounded by tall white trees, in a perfect circle around him. He was in a clearing in the forest? But how had he gotten here? The white trees were tall, but not very wide. They grew up like bars of a jail cell, trapping him inside this hell that he couldn't understand.

Seungkwan then noticed them, hanging from the trees. Wooden crosses and symbols he didn't understand, made from twigs and hung from low branches with twine. He inspected them, but couldn't quite tell what they meant. He wanted to get out of here, he knew he wanted to get up and run away. His body on the other hand was nailed in place, stiff as a board in the seated position.

He looked down to his lap, hanging his head in sadness. He was afraid. He wanted his mother. He wanted Seokmin. He wanted anyone at all, he just wanted out.. Seungkwan kept his head hung, opening his eyes only for a moment. And there it was.

The journal, opened to a page he hadn't seen before. He knew the book hadn't been there before, why was it there now? Situated as if Seungkwan had put it there himself. The page read, in familiar neat handwriting-

 

One  
I don't know where I am, but I know he's here. I know he's watching me, I feel the eyes on me, they're making me nervous.. Theyre making me sweat. Why did he bring me here? To let me rot? I've never seen trees like this, theyre whispering to me. The way they say my name makes me smile, I like when they call to me. 'Seungkwan. Seungkwan' They sing. My name is in the wind too, swirling around me and ruffling my hair. The wind is warm, and so is he.

 

Seungkwan clenched his eyes shut, disbelieving. He hadn't written that, He hadn't done any of that! This was insane, something was in his head, messing with him. He opened his eyes again, the warm amber glow of the sun muted by the blanket over his head.

He sat up in bed, looking around frantically. He was in bed! He had never felt so relieved to be in bed, eve if it was just the bed in the cabin. It was all just a horrible dream. He hopped out of bed, making his way to the kitchen with a bright smile on his face. "Goodmorning Seokmin!" He hummed.

The kitchen smelled of delicious eggs and bacon, making Seungkwans stomach growl like that of a hungry animal. Seokmin didn't respond to Seungkwan though, he just stood, making eggs. "Are you still mad at me? Bout the journal thing?" He frowned, suddenly truly feeling guilty for his actions. He had been snooping, and he loved Seokmin, he should have listened to him when he asked him to not touch it again.

Seungkwan hadn't really touched it again though, not really, but he felt terrible for even considering touching the book again. It was at this point though, Seungkwan realized his friend still hadn't responded. 

"Seokmin?" He called again, grabbing seokmins shoulder gently, turning him so they were face to face. There was no Seokmin there at all, just a gaping hole of gore where his best friends face once was. He let out a blood curdling scream, falling into the floor and scrambling away from where his literal shell of a best friend had stood before.

His heart was beating unbelievably fast, hot tears streaming down his cheeks, bile bubbling up in his throat, threatening to burst free any moment. "Seungkwan, are you okay? Geez." Seokmin asked, pulling him into a tight hug. Seokmin with a face. "When did you get in here, you look like you saw a ghost!"

Seungkwan clung to seokmins shirt as if it was the only thing that was holding himself together. "S-Seokmin, something is so wrong.. so so wrong. You didn't.. Your face was just an empty hole.. You were a monster."

Seokmin sighed softly, "Seungkwan. Why did you have to touch it? Why did you have to bring this curse to yourself.. I.. I don't want to leave you here alone."

"Leave me here! Alone? What do you mean, Idiot! You cant fucking leave me here alone?!" Seungkwan shouted, he rarely ever shouted at Seokmin or cursed at all. "What do you mean by 'curse' Seokmin, its just a book!"

Seokmin sighed, he should have known this was coming, he should have anticipated this from the start. "its not a book, Seungkwan. Its a skin journal, my great grandparents would make them from animals they killed while hunting around here, they sold them for profit. One day, my great grandpa shot a young boy who had been out making his way to the town over, taking a shortcut through the forest. He wasn't very old, maybe twenty at the most, shot and killed. My grandpa, instead of owning up to his mistake, made up a story about how the poor boy was a monster and he did it to protect the town.

"He was made out to be a creature too tall for his skin, teeth too long for his mouth. He made everyone think this poor boy was some horrible being, making a journal from the flesh on his back. I remember being told he was still alive when he was skinned, that's what the people say, that he cried and screamed for help, but no one wanted to help the monster. No one knew what he really was.. No one but our family. According to what I've heard, the poor boy came back as the monster he was said to be. The people of the town were afraid of him and put up sigils on the trees, trying to ward him away. It didn't work. He still lurks in the woods, some say hes trying to harm others. Some say he's just alone. Whoever writes in the journal is part of him. He takes these people, and who knows what hes done with them..

"Just please tell me you haven't written in the journal." Seokmins eyes were pleading.

Seungkwan was unable to answer.


End file.
